Shooting Techniques in Basketball: The Lay Up

• What is a lay up in basketball?
• How does a lay up work?
• Four types of lay ups
• Overhand lay up
• Underhand lay up
• The power move
• The up and under
• How do I practice the lay up?
• Common lay up mistakes
• Excercise to improve your jump

Approach the hoop while dribbling. Grab the ball with both hands, jump into the air and flick the ball onto the backboard and into the hoop. The lay up is one of the most fundamental offensive basketball manuevers and can be performed by beginners and professionals alike.

Due to the short distance to the basket, the basket lay up is a sure way to score points.

Did you know?
The lay up and jump shot are the oldest shooting techniques in basketball.

To learn the sequence of movements and steps, we recommend starting your lay up from a standing position with a single dribble.

Here's how a basketball lay up works with your right hand:

Assume the starting classic shooting position.

Hold the ball close to your body with both hands at hip level.

At the same time, pull the right knee up. This helps stabilise your shot and accelerate you to the basket.

Important: When jumping off, focus on jumping upwards more than forwards.

Once in the air, stretch out your right arm. At the apex, straighten your arm and elbow to shoot the ball towards the backboard. Your goal is the upper right corner of the square on the backboard.

In this video, you can see how a fluid lay up looks:

The lay up with the left hand works exactly the same but inverted, so start with your left foot, jump off with your right leg, and lay up with your left arm.

Our tip: Be sure to train both hands. This will help step up your game.

The following exercise helps beginners practice and internalise the lay up:

Here's another step by step guide on how to perform the lay up.

Step 1: Catch the ball landing with your left foot
Step 2: Step forward with your right foot
Step 3: Jump off with your left foot
Step 4: Drive forward with your right knee
Step 5: Simultaneously, bring the ball up with your right hand
Step 6: Lay it up softly

There are four different lay up techniques. The technique we've mentioned is simple and well suited for beginners. The other lay up techniques are more difficult and suited for experienced basketball players.

The ball is thrown from the hand onto the backboard. The basketball lay up can be done with or without the backboard.

When laying up, the whole arm is stretched out. The hand is placed under the ball. Snap your wrist upwards so that the ball rolls off the fingertips. This will help the ball rise and fall softly into the basket.

The underhand lay up is:

• easier to block,
• for lay ups farther from the basket,
• only possible with a strong jump.

The following video shows how to do the finger roll with the underhand lay up:

The player starts by jumping past the opponent, fakes the throw, bringing the ball around, and then lobbing the ball just before landing. In action, here's how the up and under lay up looks:

The lay up is a very elaborate technique and can best be trained methodically in a series.

This means: For the lay up, first practice the individual steps and start with the simplest part. If you manage these steps individually, connect the steps in the correct order one by one.

Here's how the process works:
Step 1: Perfect your accuracy on the back board. Stand 45° from the backboard and practice.
Step 2: Practice the two-contact rule: Right - left - jump - back board shot.
Step 3: Add in a single dribble then repeat step 2.
Step 4: Add more dribbling in to feel more comfortable transitioning from dribbling to shooting. Then repeat step 2.
Step 5: Practice these steps with your weaker hand.

Since the lay up is quite complex, problems are sure to arise in the beginning. Perfect practice makes perfect execution. Here's how to counteract typical mistakes:

Jumping with the wrong leg or approaching the basket with the wrong sequence of steps

• Go through the steps slowly, one at a time.
• Have your coach or teammate tell you right leg during the step sequence.

Missing arm extension with the standing shot

t
• Train the standing throw for a while.

Jump is not high enough

• Pull the non-jumping knee actively up.
• Do excercises that isolate your jump.

A strong jump is vital for a successful lay up. We'll show you how to practice this.

Important before starting your lay up exercises:
Warm up to get your muscles and joints ready for the strain. Be sure to plan sufficient breaks while practicing your jumping. Take care of your body to prevent injuries.

Genetically speaking, you can increase your jump height by a maximum of 10 to 20 percent. In addition to leg strength, a stable core is a necessity. A stable core allows you to better catapult yourself upwards, as your jump and core then work together to throw yourself up.

Along with jumping excercises, you can strengthen the core with the following excercises:

• Plank
• Push up
• Sit ups

We recommend the following excercises if you'd like to train your jump.

The jump lunge trains your explosive power:

• Place your feet hip wide.
• Take a large step back with your right foot.
• Knee is just over the ground.
• Jump and change legs.

Note: Only perform this exercise once you've mastered the dead lift. If not, you could injure your back.

To do box jumps, you'll need a stable box or bench.

• Stand upright with feet hip-wide in front of the box.
• Bend the knees until your thighs are parallel to the floor.
• Jump upwards and swing your arms forward.
• Land as gently as possible on the box in a squatting position.
• Jump back down gently to the ground.

Throw the basketball against the backboard and try to catch it at the apex of its flight path.

For this exercise, put one leg in the air, bend your knees and explode upwards. Once your leg is exhausted, switch legs. We recommend this excercise at the end of your training session.

Still looking for more tips for your training? Sport psychologist and performance coach Sebastian Altfeld shows you how to effectively plan a basketball practice session. Or take a look at our other articles on the same topic:

• The Dunk
• Basketball Rules
• The Jump Shot

If you're still looking for the training jersey for you or your team, we recommend taking a look at our Online Shop. Or design your own jersey with our 3D Designer.

Image credits: Image 1: lechatnoir/ Gettyimages/E+; Image 2: 4x6/Gettyimages/E+; Image 3: miodrag ignjatovic/ Gettyimages/E+